With a short, but forceful statement, the United States Government referred on Thursday, May 2, 2024 to the determination of Colombian President Gustavo Petro to break diplomatic relations with Israel. This, after the head of state, during the mobilizations in support of his administration, indicated from Bolívar Square that, as of today, he was cutting the channel between both nations.
“Here, before you, The President of the Republic informs that tomorrow diplomatic relations with the State of Israel will be broken“said Petro from the platform where he addressed his supporters, who in good numbers filled the iconic place, during the day in which International Workers’ Day was also commemorated.
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In this regard, a spokesperson for the State Department of the North American country indicated that it would be crucial for its main ally in South America and its partner in the Middle East to recover, through dialogue, the political relationship, which was broken after the president’s announcement: that although it had been ‘cooking’ for almost eight months, it was considered abrupt.
“We maintain solid relations with both Colombia and Israel. We urge continued dialogue and the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between these two valuable partners,” read the statement, which was released by Caracol News. With this, the long-awaited statement from the American power was given, if you will, in favor of overcoming this crisis between both countries.
Although the president’s decision was to cut off the friendly path with this state, which is motivated by the Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip, in an attack on the terrorist group Hamasand which has left thousands of victims in the Palestinian people, the national government stated that it will continue to provide consular services in said territory, for compatriots who require some procedure.
The only implication in the measure, according to the information that the chancellor (e) Luis Gilberto Murillo was in charge of replicatingis that contact between both governments is suspended, through its officials, since everything else will continue as it has happened until now. An announcement that was considered, if you will, gaseous, since there is some confusion about its scope.
“I would like to refer to the facts that have been in public debate. The breaking of relations with Israel. It has taken some by surprise. Since October 2023, the President proposed that route if there was no change in Israel’s behavior in Gaza,” Murillo said about the event, with which he cleared up the questions that Petro caused with his announcement before the more than 40,000 present in the square. .
With this, he also explained that the main reason for closing diplomatic channels with Israel was after rejecting the ceasefire in the conflict that the world is closely following. “As a Government, we awaited the results of the ceasefire negotiationswhich has been rejected and is proposed to come with more violence,” said the official, thereby ruling out that the Executive’s position will undergo a change.
And some of the qualifiers used by the president in relation to Israeli actions on the strip are closely linked to those considering the attack as a genocide against a people that does not have the same capacity for defense. These arguments, as expected, have generated strong annoyance in the administration of Benjamin Netanyahu and his representative in Colombia, Gali Dagan.
